Collaboration, competition and violence in eighth‐grade students’ classroom writing

Abstract We examined gender features in eighth‐grade students’ writing in terms of the relationships among characters and the use of violence, comparing our analyses to perspectives offered by the students in small group conversations. By using a variety of data collection techniques, we were able to extend the findings of previous studies, identifying several instances of students’ willingness to cross gender lines in ways that seemed acceptable to their peer audiences. In contrast to the gender stereotypes that prevailed in the writing analyzed in previous studies, we found evidence of competitive relationships within sports and romance stories, as well as elements of violence and metaphors of violence in some of the girls’ writing. Affiliation among male characters was a theme within some of the boys’ narratives, as well.